I've owned numerous kayaks of different styles and brands. I have never seen any major promotions for Hobie in the Midwest. The area is filled with walleye and panfish anglers yet there is so little promotion for kayaks in the area. All the kayak fishing focus tends to be along the coast, primarily focusing on bass fishing. The local dealers know little to nothing about the kayaks...I recently drove 5.5 hours to order a Pro Angler from a shop that actually has knowledge of what they are selling and have experience using Hobie products. I gave the local dealer here in town an opportunity to find the answers to questions which I already knew the answer to and stated I would buy from them if they could answer my questions. Needless to say they could not. Why do we not have any Hobie Fishing teams up here for walleye, bass or panfish? I own 2 Hobie Mirage Drive kayaks and I have yet to encounter another on the water. Will there ever be more marketing in this area to promote Hobie kayaking and fishing?

I know we do tons of marketing through fishing magazines of all kinds. We have sales reps in your region and lots of dealers all over the country. Teams are made of guys like yourself who want to help promote the sport. You can contact a dealer to check that out or email info@hobiecat.com to route a inquiry to our fishing staff here.

It is always good to see that there is such interest out there! I love that you always run into people who have never seen a Mirage kayak. Shows the market potential is strong.

I'll pass along a link to this question to our marketing and fish staff.

My Hobie dealer was very helpful. I live in Las Vegas and the only Hobie dealer was in Lake Havasu(Souhwest kayaks). I purchased the Hobie Pro Angler 14 and the trailex trailer with the cradles. My dealer Bob from Southwest Kayaks met me in Laughlin which is half way. An hour he drove to meet me and seal the deal. Great service Bob.

I,m in NW Arkansas and noticed the same thing as far as number of Hobies compared to kayaks. Most of the different forum posts I notice are salt water fishermen. I think its great for our small shop in the middle of nowhere to corner the mirage drive market. I have a PA12 decked out with all the bells and whistles. I fish alot on both the White River and Beaver and Tabelrock lakes. Lots of people stop or look wondering what in the world is that? Hank Parker has done shows using the Hobies so there is some marketing targeted at us. My wife did notice the Hobie adds didn't use many people with white on their head. I would volunteer for that. Jim

Our local Hobie dealer has two locations within about 15 miles of me. They're an outdoor clothing store, with some fishing, kayakying and camping stuff thrown in. Nice stores and nice people. But, they wait for kayak customers to come to them.

Several times I've broached the subject with one of their managers - suggesting that putting one of their employees in a Hobie Kayak and having him knock around one of the local city reservoirs on each Saturday and Sunday would drive a ton of customers into their stores. I know this, because I generally spend about an hour out of each of my weekend trips to those same lakes answering questions about the Mirage Drive, and in some cases, actually taking somebody for a ride in the Tandem Island. I don't search them out - they see the boat or the pedals and come over and ask what the heck it is.

For most of the shops, I guess, they just don't have or aren't willing to put on the manpower to keep somebody out in the field promoting the product. But in an area like mine, with a metro population of about a million, and perhaps a dozen heavily used reservoirs and lakes all within about 25 miles of each other, they're missing a lot of sales.

Every time I go out, as with you all, folks ask about them. I usually have a couple Hobies with me to let some try in my group (yesterday 50 yaks with us)...many questions. Fun showing them off as I zip by whilst many are getting a lil tired from paddling'. I pull up along side and pull some a 100 yards or so as an extra tease. I loaned a Sport to a woman who was having shoulder issues and thought she was not going to kayak the main Easter Egg hunt on an island event a lake ranger set up for folks. She was able to go and hang with her friends. Loved it. Is getting one real soon.

Bob is exactly right. Hobie's real marketing Dept is the local satisfied Hobie users. Looking at an ad in one thing but seeing a Mirage Drive in action and trying one out is what gets someone's attention. Experiencing what your money actually buys eliminates a huge leap of faith that ads simply can't reach. Additionally, there are many kayak users and fishermen who don't read the magazines, see the ads or go to the shows.

Many of us let others try our boats for an impromptu "demo". The resulting look of surprise and delight is priceless, and often we see them back in their new Hobie kayak! Dealers who do well around here are almost always actively involved in community kayaking/fishing events. Hobie offers their dealers special incentives to purchase and make available designated "demonstration" boats. It's up to the individual dealers to take advantage of it.

Some areas are further ahead on the learning curve than others so you can still see large pockets of the country where the Mirage Drive hasn't caught on yet. No doubt, it will in time. I think the same thing is happening in other countries and regions as well.

I have to agree with all of the previous replies. Almost everytime I go out I get lots of questions from all kinds of curious folks. One of the things that really brings on the questions is having the sail deployed on my Oasis when I approach a launch ramp. The sail seems to act like a big neon sign and when they notice the pedals bringing the kayak in and the paddles staying in place on the side of the kayak the questions really start up. These kayaks advertise themselves. Once I tell them what the system is they almost always reply with; "Oh I've heard about these." So I think the word is out on the streets.

I definitely appreciate others who also share this concern and those who have seen the rapid growth. We have a local Scheels store in town where I live but I honestly think they're not worthy of selling Hobie's. I had to educate the sales team about the boats...what changes were coming...accessories available. I work part time at a bait shop in addition to my main job. Once student loans are paid off...I have a full business plan put together for a kayak fishing shop that I intend to start up and Hobie is definitely a line I would hope to have the priviledge to carry. It's a seasonal activity around here...yet soon as the ice breaks up, my self and others are on the water. The water temps are below 40 degrees and air temps in the 50's and were excited to hit the water before docks are slid back in.

HOw many other kayak do you see in your area that fish? No hobies, but other kinds?

Sound like a good time to see if you can get a business started in that area. Hobie will expand if someone will open the store!! Good Luck.

I see a few people out in smaller Pelicans and I've come across one other guy that also has a Native Ultimate that he fishes out of. Otherwise so many people are unfamiliar with kayak fishing. No one around here promotes kayak fishing....in fact I tend to get crazy looks at the idea of fishing out of a kayak until I outfish them.

Another crowd that would be huge to target Hobie's to in this area are the waterfowl hunters. Thousands of people visit South Dakota/North Dakota for hunting Canadian Geese, Snows or Blues during the colder months. It is such a pain to drag a duck boat around for one person that this is also a huge market in this area for hunters. Hard to beat pedaling a small craft when all bundled up in camo and having your arms held up with a shotgun taking down birds. It's the ultimate retriever as well for those who don't have a dog to retrieve birds as well.

I purchased my Outback in 2010 from Sailboats, Inc. at The Indy Boat, Sport and Travel Show in Indianapolis, Indiana. Although, I had researched the Outback for some time and had extensive knowledge about the kayak, I found that Sailboats, Inc. were fairly knowledgeable about the product line. Along with the promotion of Hobie at the boat shows, they do numerous demos at local lakes here in central Indiana. They have a decent stock of various kayaks and accessories at their store as well. They are active with Hobie, and right here in the heart of the midwest. Ultimately though, we consumers will be the real marketers as illustrated in the previous posts. I get inquiries every time I go out and love to answer questions. We must remember that although the Hobies aren't near the cost of a motorized boat, these kayaks are still pricey to the everyday consumer, especially in this economy. Hell, I've got at least $3,000 in mine alone and I haven't regretted it a bit. I kind of like being on the water in something that isn't real common, particularly on freshwater and here in the midwest. It's kind of like being in an exclusive club. Ultimately though, Hobie is quality and quality will sell.

I hear ya there....I thought my Starbucks addiction was expensive/bad but ever since I got into Hobie's....I've actually started sacrificing my craving for Starbucks to save up for the PA12 I just got last week. On top of that...I've got an Lowrance Elite 7 HDI, Gear Track, Screwballs, Mightymounts, and a few Ram mounts on the way to start off rigging it.